You're Not A Monster!
by Akai Tenshi96
Summary: It's his birthday, but he is not happy. Sasuke wants to know why, what will he do, when he learns the truth? No Yaoi, Rated T to be sure.


**Disclaimer: I own nothing, but the story. Charecters belong to Kishimoto-san.**

_'Thoughts'_

"Dialogue"

Anything else

We were walking down the mainroad of Konoha, I had helped Naruto buying groceries. Today was special day, it was his birthday. I knew that he hated it, why he did, I had no clue, but I wanted to change that. I wanted to give him an unforgetable day.

I had put aside my pride and made him laugh at every opportunity, I had joked around and even made myself look silly in public places, and he had laughed, hopefully he wouldn't hate this birthday.

We were now heading towards his apartment, when we arrived, I would give him his present. I had put it safely in my bag, only hidden by a plasticbag.

It was a painting, which I had spent a month on. It had been made between training and missions in the late nights. It was of him and me. The background was completly white and we stood before one another with outstrechted arms, which were connected by one single, blue bond. We both had a tight grip around it and we looked each other in the eyes. Both of us had smiles on our faces, his, a bit wider than mine, but still, both were filled with happiness. It had surprised me, how good I was, when it came to painting. The result was better than expected.

We soon reached his apartment, but as his hand slowly lifted up to open the door, he let it drop again.

"I think it's time for you to go home, Sasuke," he said. His voice was hallow and flat. Something about it made me shiver, I had never heard him talk like that before, he sounded almost dead. I froze, I didn't move an inch. My mind was out of control. _'Naruto never refused to be with me and now he suddenly wanted me to leave,' _

"Sasuke, you don't have to be with me, just to make me happy, I'm fine, you know," His voice was, if even possible, even colder than before.

"Why do you want me to leave?" I asked, I didn't do anything to hide, that I had been hurt by his words.

"Look, I just don't think you should see my apartment, as it is right now," he answered. _'Was that all?' _

"If that the problem, then I can tell you, that I have seen a lot of messy houses, yours can't possibly be worse," I said with little grin on my face. He turned to look at me, this time, he smiled.

"Sasuke, it has been a very good day, let's not ruin it, I'll see you later," I kept starring at him. There was something about that smile, something that really annoyed me, something that really made me angry. I had been used to his smile, I had even came to like it, cause it meant that everything was okay, but this was different. I looked closer and that's when it hit me, it was fake.

"Naruto, let me at least help you carry your groceries inside," I tried, but he was stubborn and snapped.

"Why don't you just go, I don't need your pity, I'm completly fine on my own!" His hand shoot up to his mouth, as he realised that he had said to much.

"Pity? Why should I feel pity?" He was definately hiding something and I wanted to know, what it was.

"Ehm... Nothing, really, nothing, I just said something, no need to worry," he quickly said. I sighed.

"Naruto, you're a terrible liar," his smile faded as I continued. " I won't go, until I know, what's going on," I said determined. He took a deep breath, before he turned to the door again.

"I warned you," he said, his voice cold again. "Be prepared,"

_'Prepared? For what?" _He turned the doorknob and as the door slowly slid open, he said:

"Welcome to my life," He sounded dead now and when the door was open, my mouth dropped.

The hall was painted with red paint and the big letters stroke directly in my heart. _'Go die, Monster!'_ it said. I was petrified by the words, but that wasn't what shoked me the most. It was the fact that Naurto didn't seemed the slightest affcted by it.

He walked right past it like he hadn't seen it, like it was a part of his daily rutine to see a note like that. I forced my body to follow him inside and when we reached his open room, which worked as kithcen, bedroom and living room, I dropped what I was holding.

Everything was, in a way or another, destroyed, broken and it still didn't seem to have any effects on Naruto. He didn't look twice at it, but dropped his groceries in a corner. I couldn't belive it, I had been here before, when I came to pick him up before training, but I had never experienced this.

Naruto was apparently trying to find something to wipe away the paint with. I on the other hand didn't move neither did I speak. My eyes wandered around the apartment and took in all the horrors surrounding us.

The bedshets were ripped in long stripes and feathers were scattered all over the place, red paint had dripped down on the white bed, the word _'Monster' _which now was written above the bed, had never sounded so cruel to me, as it did now. It was like a poisen that spreaded througout my body and it made me suffer. The worst part, was that it wasn't meant for me. There had been a single table and two chairs, but they were now nothing, but small pieces of wood, ready to be used in a fireplace. The kitchen seemed to have been burned down, as ashes were surrounding the remaining furnitures.

The words _'Die'_, _'Demon'_ and _'Monster' _were written on the walls, the floor, the ceiling and on every objekt which still had a smooth surfaces. Frames and pictures had been broken and ripped apart, the windows were shattered into several peices of sharp glass and his clothes had been burned. The ashes had been scattered in the apartment and it would take weeks to clean it all.

Naruto had in the meantime found a piece of his clothes, which hadn't been completly burned down and was now trying to clean the floor. He sat before the word _'Monster'_ and was silent as the grave.

Neither of us said anything, he tried to clean, without any succes and my body wouldn't move. I merely watched him, as his efforts gave no results.

Suddenly he stopped scrubbing and silent tears streamed down his face and as he spoke, I was pushed out of my trance.

"It's like this every year," he said between sobs. I felt a sudden need to protect him and I immediatly rushed to his side. I pulled him into my and let him cry on my shoulder.

I don't know how long we sat like that, but i gave him tha time he needed. When he finally seemed relaxed, I let him go and I stared directly into his deep, blue eyes.

"It's not nearly as bad, as last year," he said, and I tried to imagine, what could be worse than this. I gave him a confusing look and he answered.

"Last year, they burned down the apartment," he explained, " they stopped the fire, but not before everything I owned had been burned down to ashes," as he spoke, anger started to build inside of me. _'How could they?'_ he was so kind, so good and so innocent. He was probably the purest person in the village and still he was treated this way.

He was like snow, so beautyful, when left untouched, but ruined as soon as you step on it. He had been stepped on, he had been crushed beneth the actions of others. I wanted to confront those, who had done it, make them suffer so hard, that they wouldn't be able to stand for a month. They should regret hurting an innocent person, who had done nothing to them.

"Why?" I asked, "Why are they doing it?" He looked at me, his eyes piercing through me as if I was an idiot for not knowing.

"They suffer because of me," he snapped. The sentence cut me off guard.

"Because of you? But you are so... so pure," I could have chosen every positive word, but pure seemed to cover most of them.

"Sasuke, I _am _a monster! It's not something they're making up!" He yelled and my eyes grew wider.

"No," I protested, "You're not-" He cut me off.

"Let me tell you a secret. When the Kyuubi attacked the village 13 years ago, the fourth hokage sealed it within a newborn child," He took a deep breath and looked at me to insure, that i got the last part.

"That child was me!" I had seen it coming. The first mention of the Kyuubi had made me realise what he was or rather, what was inside him. That's when I saw it, their mistake.

"You can't blame them," his voice soft again, but lifeless. "It must be hard to see the source of their losses, wandering freely around," He lowered his gaze and I kept mine at his sad face.

I had never in my wildest dreams imaginated that I would see Naruto like this, so hopeless and sad. He aways seemed to be happy, full of courage and he always believed in things that that rest of us, had lost faith in, but now he looked so empty.

"You're not a monster," I said, he looked up at me, his eyes full of tears.

"Liar, you only say that to comfort me, you know that it's not true," he said and looked away again. It hurt me that he didn't believe me. I took his head in my hands and turned it, so that he had no choice, but to look at me.

"You're not a monster!" I shouted, "You may have one sealed inside of you, but that doesn't change who you are. What matters, is what's in here," I put a finger on his beating heart, "That's what makes you, who you are," I smiled, "and you are an amazing person, who has a great heart.

He had now tears streaming down his cheeks. He then burried his face in my chest and held him close into me.

"Arigato, Sasuke" he mumbled.

"I was just telling the truth," I said honestly. I stroke my hand up and down his back, like my mother had always done, when I had been sad. He then suddenly let go of me and his face was full of fear.

"You're leaving, You're..." he said, "Please don't leave, stay with me," he was begging now, if it wasn't because we were already on our knees, he would have bowed for me. Instead he bowed his head and folded his hands.

"Please," he whispered. I felt guilty, I knew what he was talking about. I was leaving the village, and I had to admit, that was my plan. I hadn't thought of it, until he had mentioned it and I mentally slapped myself. I wanted to protect him, but by leaving, I would hurt him.

I took his hand in mine and he looked up. Our eyes met and I came to a decision.

"I would have left," I said slowly, "but, for you, I will stay. For you, I will not leave," I smiled and more tears formed in his eyes. I would have thought that there couldn't be more, since he had done nothing, but crying for the past fifteen minutes.

"I want you to know, that I am always there for you, that even if we are seperated, I will always be there, watching over you, remember that," I said, I had no idea, where it came from, but it seemed right and I promised myself to stick to it, he was to important to throw away.

He was my precious brother, whom I would protect from all evil, even if it meant giving up on my revenge. I would be willing to give my life for him, he was important, not just to me, but to everyone, he just didn't realise it.

One day everyone would see, just how important he was and he finally gain his goal, acceptance. To me, it was incrediable that he hadn't already gained it, he was a perfect being, always making the right decision's, when the time was right, but instead people chose to look at someone like me, who was full of mistakes and regrets.

He had been put in the shadows, but I wanted him out in the sun. I wanted him to shine on the villagers, just as he shined on me. He was a blessing and he would light up tha dark times. He had the ability to make everyone a happier, than they already were. We would need that in the future and he would guide us, he would guide the people full of mistakes. He would guide us away from the dark and in to the light, just like he had done with me.

I owed him my life and loyality. I owed him everything I could give him, he didn't know it, but he had really changed me. I had always been afraid of bonding with others and then he had come. He had broken down my defences and had found a place in my heart. Before i knew it, others had done it too. Slowly, but surely, people had slid in to my cold heart and instead of throwing them all away, I let them stay, and it was all thanks to him. He had shined on me and made me open my eyes to reality. He had pulled out the real me, which I had so carefully pushed aside and locked away.

I pulled myself from my thoughts and looked at him again.

"By the way, it's still your birthday," I said smilling. He gave a confused look and I took my bag and gave him the painting.

"I would have wrapped-" I was cut of by a body, suddenly flung onto me.

"I take it, that you like it," I grined and he nodded into me chest.

"Well then, happy birthday," I tighted my grip around him, "Happy birthday."

**First one-shot, please review. Inspired by: Rascal Flatts - I wont let go.**


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